June 24, 2013

Hola familia!

What a week! New companion, WOW! Amazing. Seriously spectacular! Her name is Hermana Villanueve and she´s from Lima. She´s 22 and has been in the mission for 7 months. It´s hard because I feel like I´m being completely retrained in so many ways, but it´s a good thing. She is so strong and works through the Spirit. Nothing is really rote (which is difficult at times since I don´t know what to say a lot of times), but the people we teach are able to feel the Spirit which is more important.

We had the baptism for Melanie on Saturday! Wahoo! It was great because her family was there and everything was well organized (it helps when the Bishop and leaders have confidence and trust the missionaries). It was really special because Hna Diaz worked with Melanie for 7 months and it finally happened. Melanie seemed so happy and we are going to continue to work with her to help her grow and continue in the faith.

We watched the broadcast last night with all of the mission and the Turks said their goodbyes and bore their testimonies. Blech! So hard. The broadcast was rough because it was in Spanish so really there was a lot I didn´t get, but one thing that I thought a lot about was how we have a loving Heavenly Father who loves us, always. We have a brother who is the ultimate example of how to live, because he always taught and lived with love. Therefore, if we want to live effectively, if we want to become like them, we HAVE TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER! It is essential. There is no other way to live righteously. It will be so hard to have the Turks leave, however, they have been here for three years and their time is over. They have been a solid rock in this mission and will be greatly missed. We are anxious and excited to meet President Marler and his wife soon. Please pray for them that they can feel peace as they transition into a very rough call.

Something I´ve been thinking about a lot over the last few weeks are the birds here. I´m a little torn. Let me explain why:

On one hand, they are very religious creatures. Very close with God. A woman we were teaching one day said something I loved. That the birds are always praying, always! Always singing and praising the Lord. I loved that. I want to be like that.

On the other hand, the birds here are also a  little confused as to their nature. At times I think they´ve forgotten their grand gift of flight. They scuttle around, bound to the streets and sidewalks. The only time I see them fly is when danger is too close. Often times when danger draws near they simply scuttle into a bush. It´s not unless the danger is fatal that they fly. I´ve thought a lot about how as humans we forget our nature. How we stay so close to the world when we could be flying. It´s not until we have trials in our lives that really test us or really hurt us that we turn to the heavens. I fear that one day these little birds are going to forget where they are able to turn -- just as I have witnessed in my own life at times that I forget where I can turn. Let´s never forget our nature and that we are able to do so much more, we just have to turn in the right direction.

Also I have been loving studying the family the last couple of days. The family is key to our salvation. Hna Villanueva said something I loved the other day. We can do a lot to strengthen ward members, but if we don´t strengthen the family there is a problem. We won´t live with our ward members forever, we will be with our families forever. Bah! I loved that. Let´s please try always to strengthen our family. Pray together often, read together, eat together, play together, work together. BE TOGETHER!

I love you! Be strong. Love always. Remember your nature.

Love Hermana Butterfield

June 17, 2013

Happy Father´s Day to all the Dads in my life! I love you all so much! Well, it´s been a week already! Time just seems to be flying! Let´s see, what´s been going on...

I have been studying faith a lot recently, it just seems to be the focus of my thoughts. Faith is truly the basis of everything we do. If we don´t have faith it´s impossible to do much of anything. I was reading in Hebrews Chapter 11 and I loved it. I invite you all to read it as well.

We have cambios this week. We found out last night that Hermana Diaz will be changing and leaving to a different area. It´s rather sad and I´ll be honest, I´m quite scared. She has been in our area for 8 months and knows it and the people like the back of her hand. I have 2 months here and...well yeah I couldn´t tell you much.  It´s so hard because everyone has 3 plus names and they say it so fast I can never really catch it. And the addresses are even worse to learn haha...oh dear. Elder Cook said that my new companion is awesome and probably one of the very best sister missionaries in our mission...no pressure.

Elder Espinal, our District Leader finished his mission today. So sad. He was an awesome missionary for sure.

So some good news, we finally got permission from Melani´s parents for her to be baptized! We´re planning on it for this Saturday! Hermana Diaz is really struggling because she has worked with Melani from the beginning for 7 months and now that we finally have permission she is being changed. It´s really sad, but I´m trying to stay optimistic...I can´t even imagine how she must feel. 

We also have started teaching a young man named Gustavo. We´ve met with him twice and he came to church on Sunday. Progressing investigator finally! He doesn´t have a strong belief in God, however, he wants to learn more. He also said he´d be baptized if he feels it´s true. Lot´s of prayers, please?

Also, happy moment yesterday, Santiago, the young man that was baptized when I first got here passed the Sacrament yesterday! It was such a cool feeling to see him practice his Priesthood. He is awesome and always enthusiastic to learn more about the Gospel and help.

This week we did intercambios and I went to the Zone Primavera with Hermana Bedoya and Hermana Arancibia (they are both in my district). We were talking with a woman that they know at her tienda when the woman reached into her shirt and pulled out a baby duck. What the heck?! Yes a baby duck, living, wrapped in what looked like a stretched out cotton ball. My guess is she was trying to just keep it warm since it´s been so cold. I laughed a lot after we left. Just so bizarre and I wasn´t expecting it at all.

Also, while in Primavera we helped Elders Cook and Hales set up for a mass wedding. It´s cheaper for the people to do mass weddings so their were 4 couples married on Saturday. Way cool.

We are trying to work hard always and trying to do what we can to strengthen our area. It will definitely be a change with a new companion so please pray that we can work well together and that I know enough about my area that I don´t ruin everything...haha...but really.

I love you all so much. Keep being good, keep being strong, and remember your covenants.

Love,

Hermana Butterfield

Faith without works is dead and works without faith is pointless!

June 10, 2013

For our last P-day we were able to go to Huanchaco. It´s an area in our zone that has a beach. It was beautiful.  We really can´t spend time on the beach, but it was beautiful to look at. We ate lunch in the house of their pensionista and then went to the beachfront church and watched Cars 2.

We are hoping to get permission this week from the parents of one of our investigators that we´ve been working with for quite a while. Lots of prayers, please! We are constantly contacting and searching for new investigators. I know the Lord is and will continue to bless us as we work hard and have faith in His works.

The Book of Mormon is so true. When we know this it´s easy to have a testimony of Joseph Smith as a prophet of the Lord. We are so blessed to have this truth that was written for us in our times. I feel the love of the Lord through it´s words and as we strive to live how the Lord wants us to, we receive blessings that we don´t realize.

 Continue to be amazing!  Love Hermana Bug

June 3, 2013

So some funny stories for you...mainly to do with my inability to pronounce certain words at times. These stories can go in my book of embarrassing moments like the rest of my life (:

So when you´re hungry you say yo tengo hambre -- I have hunger, right? the word for man is hombre. One day I accidentally said, yo tengo hombre...yeah, I have a man...obviously. Then, I was telling the family we pension with when my birthday was. August 29. But instead of Augosto, I said Augusto. The husband, Freddy, asked, who is Augusto? Hermana Jessica yelled, He´s her Hombre! They tease me about him a lot. But he came in handy the other day after one of our lessons when one of our new investigators (who is 63) asked if I had a boyfriend or was engaged because, well, he wants a wife (yeah no thanks). My companion said yes she is engaged to Augusto, he´s 29 and lives in the United States and is waiting for me. So if you all meet an Augusto who is 29...let me know, because I´m engaged to him and he hasn´t written yet (; haha oh my life.

Anyway, things are going well here. From enjoying all of the dogs in the streets and their little flea friends, to helping a lady pick avocados from her tree, Peru is always an adventure!

It´s been really cool to see Santiago (the first youth that was baptised while I was here) grow and get involved in his quorum. It´s really great to see how when you have people receive and magnify their callings how they bless lives. His Quorum leader has really taken an interest in their quorum and there is such a great unity now with the young men and they are embracing Santiago so well. He wants to start joining us in lessons which is awesome!

I am definitely learning that faith is a choice and not something that simply comes. It takes work, but it is worth it. Well my time is short today, but I love you all so much and for your examples to me. Thank you for everything you do and for who you are. You have made me who I am (the good parts at least)

Con amor,  Hermana Butterfield